ach year when a new crop of studentsenters my classroom, I am dismayed bywhat I perceive as a culture of learnedhelplessness. Students seem to lack the curiosityand determination needed to solve problems.

I’ve come to believe that this learned helplessness could very well be the product of their
time in school. Students are so rarely afforded the
freedom to drive their own learning that when
they are asked to solve challenging problems, they
become paralyzed. Their knee-jerk reaction is to
ask the teacher. If the teacher does not provide
answers, students quickly become disillusioned
and quit.

Valuing the Struggle

Teachers are skilled at providing students with
detailed directions. Everything from in-class
activities to large-scale projects is explicitly outlined. I began my career this way—with crystal
clear directions for every assignment. I thought I
was being helpful because I didn’t want my students to struggle. I even asked students to use the
same tools or software because it was easier for
me to support the process and answer questions if
students ran into trouble.

In retrospect, I realize I was robbing my students
of the opportunity to make key decisions in their
learning and limiting them to technology tools
that I was most comfortable with. There is value
in the struggle, and students must determine their
own path if learning is going to be meaningful. If
students can shape their own learning experiences,
they will be more invested in them and inclined
to stick with their work even in moments of
confusion or frustration.

Now when my class embarks on a large-scaleproject, I provide an umbrella topic and give stu-dents general guidelines. My goal is to explain thewhy, not the how. It is up to the students to workcollaboratively with their group to lay out a planof attack for a project. Giving students controlover the focus of their project and the trajectoryof their work serves to spark their curiosity andincrease engagement because they realize this istheir project.

During our mental health unit, for example,
I asked students to design a project that would
raise awareness locally or globally about a mental
health condition. The goal of the project was broad
enough that it allowed students to tailor it to their
particular interests and talents. One group worked
collaboratively to create an art installation, and
then took photos of their artwork to create an
online gallery to raise awareness about depression.
Another group created a virtual reality experience,
while others wrote children’s books, built models,
and published podcasts. Students had to conduct
interviews with experts and individuals living with
these mental illnesses. They had to do extensive
online research. They had to select the best technology tools to communicate, collaborate, create,
and publish.

Catlin TuckerTHE TECHYTEACHEREPutting Them in the Driver’s SeatGive students the freedom and tech range to become problem solvers.